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Boston Red Sox analysis, commentary and humorenCopyright 2015Tue, 31 Mar 2015 12:09:43 UTChttp://www.sixapart.com/movabletype/http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss
With baseball season less than one week away, here are some predictions for the upcoming season.

Less than one week.

In less than one week, the 2015 Major League Baseball season will officially begin. The games count, the optimism and cynicism of fans will be realized. That means that it is time for some preseason predictions.

Who will win the World Series? Who will be league Most Valuable Player? Cy Young winner? Rookie of the Year? Here are some early guesses.

AL Rookie of the Year: Daniel Norris, SP Toronto Blue Jays

Rookies need a few things. They need to produce, but they also need opportunities.

Not in this case. Mike Trout wasn't on the Los Angeles Angels opening day roster back in 2012, but he ended up having decent rookie campaign.

Bryant is not Trout. That does't mean he's not equally as promising. It is easy to say that no rookie has been better this spring. But with Bryant, no major league player has been better this spring. It isn't even close.

As it turned out, he was not a lock. But this season he will lock up the award.

Fernandez has spent all nine years of his career playing for offensively deficient Mariners teams. This year, he's likely to see more run support, and with that comes more wins. Expect the typical high-strikeout, low-ERA stats and some uncharacteristically high win totals. Add it all up and you've got Hernandez winning his second AL Cy Young award.

Kershaw has won the NL Cy Young award in three of the last four seasons. In 2012, he finished second in the voting. Last season, Kershaw added the NL MVP award to his trophy case.

Don't expect Kershaw to repeat as the MVP winner, but do expect yet another Cy Young award.

This isn't just about Kershaw's dominance. Matt Harvey, who is coming back from Tommy John surgery might not hit his stride until mid-season. Jose Fernandez of the Miami Marlins won't even take the mound until mid-season. Madison Bumgarner is coming off an epic postseason performance and has looked a little fatigued this spring. Jon Lester will excel in Chicago, but he won't be quite good enough to win the Cy Young.

Kershaw? Oh yeah, expect another ho-hum season where he routinely flirts with no-hitters, strikes out tons of helpless looking batters, makes walks look like an endangered species and wins the NL Cy Young award.

AL MVP: Mike Trout, CF, Los Angeles Angels

If you think it is boring to predict repeat winners of major awards, take into account that Mike Trout is 23 years old. How on earth does one not predict Trout to win another MVP award?

Sure, an injury or a statistically unlikely season from another American League superstar could derail Trout's hopes of winning the award. But if you're looking for a degree of certainty, then Trout is the pick. He's just too talented to not be the league MVP.

Jose Altuve, Jose Abreu, Robinson Cano, Miguel Cabrera and (if you put stock in spring training performance) Mookie Betts could all have memorable seasons. Trout is the only guy who could hit over .300 with more than 30 home runs, 100 runs scored, 100 runs batted in and 25 or more stolen bases. If those numbers don't win you a MVP award then something is amiss.

NL MVP: Giancarlo Stanton, RF Miami Marlins

Sometimes guys sign massive contracts and then their performances drop-off. This is not one of those times.

If not for an unfortunate pitch -- that hit Stanton in the head and ended his 2014 season -- we might be discussing Stanton's mission to repeat as NL MVP. Instead he's back and he's got a lot to prove.

First, there's the questions that surround whether or not Stanton will ultimately be worth the record-setting 13-year, $325 million contract extension he signed during the offseason. Then there's the issue of whether or not there will be lingering effects from the beanball he took to the side of his face last September.

Miami made some offseason acquisitions to give Stanton more support in the lineup. He's one of the strongest, most talented players in all of baseball, and he's got lots to prove this season. Expect big things and the NL MVP award.

He'll face competition from Paul Goldschmidt, Andrew McCutchen, Carlos Gomez, Bryce Harper and Yasiel Puig. But in the end Stanton will win his first, but most likely not his last NL MVP award.

Surprise NL Team: Chicago Cubs

All the candidates for surprise team have been discussed so often that they can't be total surprises. Miami, San Diego, maybe even the New York Mets? All of those teams will be better than they've been in recent years, but no team will make a larger leap, with a more promising short and long-term future, than the Chicago Cubs.

Bryant is the guy getting all the attention. Anthony Rizzo, Jorge Soler, Javier Baez and Starlin Castro are all capable of producing impressive stats. Lester isn't alone in the starting rotation. Jake Arietta could be as good as Lester and Jason Hammel, Kyle Hendricks and Travis Wood round out what could be a very good starting five.

The Cubs haven't won more than 75 games since 2009, haven't made the playoffs since 2008 and haven't won a World Series since 1908. In other words, the bar is still low, and the Cubs could bust right through it.

Surprise AL Team: Chicago White Sox

It's going to be a fun summer in the Windy City.

The whole American League feels unpredictable. Lots of people are picking perennial afterthoughts such as the Seattle Mariners and Cleveland Indians to win their divisions or even advance to the World Series.

Seattle feels like the real deal, but they narrowly missed the playoffs last year, and have superstars such as Robinson Cano, Felix Hernandez and 2014 AL home run king Nelson Cruz.

Cleveland will be good, but not as good as Chicago.

In under two years, the White Sox have gone from being a down-and-out franchise heading into a Philadelphia Phillies-esque free fall, to an up and coming squad loaded with talent.

The White Sox have all the ingredients: a superstar slugger in Jose Abreu, a budding young talent is Avisail Garcia, a talented leadoff hitter in Adam Eaton, more power in Adam LaRoche and a multi-faceted outfielder named Melky Cabrera.

They've got two top tier starters in Chris Sale and Jeff Samardzija and they've got a bullpen with a proven closer in David Robertson and an emerging set-up stud in Zach Duke.

The White Sox won't just finish over .500 for the first time since 2012, they'll make the playoffs and unseat the Detroit Tigers as AL Central Champs for the first time since 2010.

World Series: Chicago White Sox vs. Washington Nationals

The White Sox are arguably the most talented and balanced team in the American League. Detroit will be good, but their bullpen, a lineup that strikes out too often and a weaker than usual starting rotation will be their undoing.

The Red Sox might have the best offense in the league and maybe in all of baseball, but not enough pitching to win or even advance to the World Series.

The Washington Nationals have won more than 96 games in two of the last three seasons. Both years, they failed to advance beyond the divisional round of the playoffs.

This is the year that they break through and put it all together. Washington's starting pitching is dominant: Gio Gonzalez, Stephen Strasburg, Max Scherzer, Jordan Zimmermann, Doug Fister and in case of emergency Tanner Roark.

The offense will be paced by Bryce Harper, who will emerge as the superstar he was predicted to be when he was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2010 MLB Draft. Ian Desmond, Anthony Rendon and Denard Span are all potential All-Stars. They're going to be very good, so good that the 2015 World Series Trophy is likely to be won by the Washington Nationals.

That news is probably disappointing to teams such as the Texas Rangers who were reportedly one of the teams interested in acquiring Hand via trade. It is also disappointing to anyone who was eagerly awaiting an "Aloha Mr. Hand," trade report headline.

A Carlos Rodon/Kris Bryan parallel

Back on February 17th, I wrote a column that highlighted 2014 first round draft pick Carlos Rodon as the Chicago White Sox prospect to keep an eye on this spring.

Five weeks later, Rodon is still worth watching. Selected No. 3 overall in the draft last June, the physically imposing, 22-year-old lefty has had a very impressive spring. He's 1-0 with an ERA of 3.65. His most eye-pooping stat is 19 strikeouts in 12.1 innings pitched.

Rodon has become the Chicago White Sox's equivalent of Kris Bryant. Bryant is a highly touted third base prospect for the White Sox crosstown rivals, the Chicago Cubs. He has taken spring training by storm by bashing a league-leading nine home runs.

The two prospects are both likely to be impacted by a quirky major league rule regarding how the amount of time a player spends on a major league roster impacts the time when that player will eventually become eligible to file for free agency.

Both the White Sox and Cubs can delay Bryant and Rodon's ability to file for free agency by simply leaving them off their opening day rosters and then promoting them to the majors two weeks into the 2015 season.

Two weeks less service time can equate to a full year delay of impending free agency.

Rodon and Bryant will both end up major league rosters this season, but their presence on their team's opening day rosters is still up in the air.

Ryan Howard

The Phillies aren't going to get rid of Ryan Howard by publicly pleading with teams to take him in a trade.

When you want to trade a player, it helps to try and build-up, as opposed to tear-down his perceived value.

Publicly declaring that you're willing to pay $50 million of the remaining $60 million on Howard's contract reeks of desperation. That might be the type of tactic that Phillies general manager Ruben Amaro would be better off keeping between himself and rival general managers during private negotiations.

Safe to say that not one of the other 29 major league teams want to help the Phillies. All but begging other teams to take Ryan Howard off their hands will likely result in Howard being moved for less than what his actual value is, if he's even moved at all.

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http://blog.masslive.com/redsoxmonster/2015/03/mlb_spring_training_2015_some.html
Ben Shapiro
]]>http://blog.masslive.com/redsoxmonster/2015/03/mlb_spring_training_2015_some.htmlTop Stories@homepageben-shapirocarlos-rodonchicago-white-soxkris-bryantmlb-2015philadelphia-philliesred-sox-monsterryan-howardspring-trainingFri, 27 Mar 2015 19:53:58 UTC2015-03-27T19:54:07ZNO VALUEBen ShapiroPhiladelphia Phillies Ryan Howard, left, chats with New York Yankees Hall of Famer Reggie Jackson by the batting cage before an exhibition baseball game between the Yankees and the Phillies in Tampa, Fla., Thursday, March 19, 2015. (AP Photo/Kathy Willens)
Chicago Cubs top prospect Kris Bryant keeps hitting home runs, and that's putting increased pressure on his team to throw caution to the wind and add him to the opening day roster

If you've ever played fantasy baseball, then you know there's one thing guaranteed to make grown men and women act like short-sighted children at a fantasy baseball draft or auction.

It is all about the long ball.

When it comes to home runs, nothing entices baseball fans like a young slugger who has a propensity for going deep often.

This March, when it comes to young sluggers who have the potential to hit lots of home runs, no one comes close to Chicago Cubs rookie third baseman Kris Bryant.

It is March 16, do you know who the spring training leader in home runs is?

Yep, Bryant.

It isn't even close, folks. Yes, these stats are technically meaningless. The sample size of anywhere from 8-10 games is small and -- as always -- spring training stats can be misleading.

Despite those facts, if you play fantasy baseball or follow real baseball you're going to be hearing and reading a lot about Mr. Bryant.

Cubs team President Theo Epstein has made a lot of moves that have the franchise on what appears to be a path towards success.

Selecting Bryant as the No. 2 overall pick in the 2013 MLB Draft may go down as the pivotal move of the Epstein era.

Overall, there are two keys to a baseball team gaining attendance and television ratings: winning and rising stars. If that star happens to also hit large amounts of mammoth home runs, then that's even better.

Bryant shows signs of being exactly that type of superstar.

Already this spring Bryant has crushed six home runs. Plus, over eight games, he's 9-for-20 with six home runs, nine RBI's and a modest slash line of .450/.522/1.400.

As flukey as those numbers seem, Bryant did lead all of professional baseball in home runs last season.

In 2014, playing at two levels of the Cubs minor league system, Bryant hit 43 home runs. That's one more than the 42 hit by Texas Rangers prospect Joey Gallo and three more than the 40 hit by major league leader Nelson Cruz.

Bryant has prolific power, and the more one watches him play, the more one realizes that he's on a rapid pace towards the majors.

That pace is creating a potential problem for the Cubs.

It is the type of problem most teams wish they had. It is a problem where a major league team internally debates the merits of preventing a player's free agency clock from starting, versus potentially making the current big league squad significantly better.

As of now, the Cubs' opening day third baseman is Mike Olt, another former first round pick. He was one of they key parts of the July 2013 trade which sent Matt Garza to the Texas Rangers. Olt has potential. He's also 26 years old and coming off a rookie season where he appeared in 89 games, slashed .160/.248/.356, hit 12 home runs and had 33 RBI's.

Maybe Olt will end up as a productive major leaguer. Maybe not? One thing seems certain: The potential to become a bonafide superstar just isn't there.

Bryant is a different story.

Sometimes, the next big thing sneaks up on people, but Bryant is the opposite. Thus far, he's been that rare athlete who gets gobs of seemingly superfluous hype, and then actually finds ways to meet or even exceed the expectations.

The question for the Cubs is just how much of a priority does the organization place on winning now, as opposed to saving money down the road?

Monday morning Cory DiBenedetto wrote on Gammons Daily that the Cubs could delay Bryant's major league promotion until May and in the process possibly save the team upwards of $20 million.

That might sound sensible, but then again this is the Cubs. The franchise hasn't been to the World Series since 1944, and hasn't won since 1908. The Cubs haven't finished over .500 since 2009, and haven't made the playoffs since 2008.

The fans have been as patient as any fan base in pro sports. This past offseason, the team added two-time American League Manager of the Year Joe Maddon and didn't hesitate to commit over $150 million on free agent starting pitcher Jon Lester.

Previous acquisitions such as Anthony Rizzo and Jake Arrieta came into their own in 2014. This year's Cubs team might not be a World Series-caliber squad, but they look ready to he highly competitive.

After all the moves the team has made, delaying the promotion of quite possibly the greatest power hitting prospect in all of major league baseball seems like an odd choice.

Bryant will not keep up this current pace. Regardless of when he's eventually promoted to the big league roster he will have some ups-and-downs. Slumps are part of baseball at all levels, both amateur and pro.

As of now he looks like a player who needs to be in the big leagues. He's worth watching and so is the team he plays for.

Depending on how one chooses to see things, the Detroit Tigers are either one of the American League's best teams of this decade, or one of the American League's most disappointing teams of this decade.

Detroit has won 90 or more games three times, made the playoffs in each of the last four seasons and have been to the ALCS three times and have advanced to the World Series once.

Detroit also has had three league MVP's and two AL Cy Young award winners.

As good as all of that sounds, it is also a big reason why the Tigers could be considered a disappointment: two ALCS losses, one to the Red Sox in 2013 and one to the Rangers in 2011.

In 2012, the Tigers finally advanced to the World Series, and they were swept in four games by the San Francisco Giants.

One of the reasons for the Tigers postseason struggles has been their bullpen. The pen might be mightier than the sword, but the Tigers' pen has looked as if a butter knife could slice through it.

Game 2 of the 2014 ALDS is a prime example of Detroit's bullpen issues.

On the road against the AL East Champion Baltimore Orioles, The Tigers had a commanding 6-3 lead heading to the bottom of the 8th. After Joba Chamberlain retired the first batter, Baltimore strung together two singles, a walk, an outfield misplay and a bases clearing double to take a 7-6 lead. That lead held, the Tigers were in an 0-2 hole and when they lost Game 3, the 2014 season was over.

In spite of the way the 2014 season ended, Detroit may end up starting the 2015 season with a bullpen that looks a lot like last season's. In 2014, Detroit's bullpen was 13th in ERA and their .270 opponents batting average was the worst in the league.

Last summer, the Tigers traded for veteran closer Joakim Soria, who had been closing games for the last-place Rangers. In Detroit, he was made Nathan's set-up man, and he was largely ineffective.

Soria's struggles didn't stop the Tigers from picking up his $7 million option for this season. Soria, along with Nathan and Joba Chamberlain, are all back in the bullpen.

Detroit is banking on the 40-year old Nathan to rebound from his disappointing 2014 season. If counting on a 40-year-old to have a bounce-back season sounds odd, that's because it is. Tigers manager Brad Ausmus doesn't seem too concerned. On Feb. 26, he told Chris McCosky of The Detroit News that Nathan's age wasn't an issue.

"In Joe's case, I look at last year as more of an aberration and less as a result of the aging process," he said. "That's why I'm not as concerned about it."

That was back before Nathan started to pitch in spring training games.

Nathan's four appearances this spring training have had mixed results, with the low point being 2/3 of an inning implosion Thursday afternoon against the Philadelphia Phillies. It was Nathan's first save situation of the spring, and he allowed four earned runs, gave up seven hits and walked one.

As of now, Nathan is the Tigers closer in 2015.

Now is mid-March. There's nothing all that secure about being the Tigers' closer now. Soria has made two spring training appearances. He's thrown two scoreless innings, but he's allowed one hit and walked three in those two innings of work. Four baserunners in just two innings won't convince Ausmus, or anyone else for that matter that Soria is a better option than Nathan.

There is one other potential closer lurking in that Tigers bullpen.

Two years ago, Detroit had a young, hard-throwing prospect named Bruce Rondon, who looked like the team's closer of the future. An inconsistent spring was followed by struggles at the major league level. Rondon spent most of 2013 shuttling back-and-forth between Detroit and the Tigers' Triple-A affiliate in Toledo.

Last spring, Rondon was slated to play a key role in the Tigers bullpen. Then on March 21, 2014 it was announced that Rondon needed Tommy John surgery. His 2014 season was over.

Rondon has only made one appearance. There are two veteran closers with multi-million dollar contracts ahead of him. That doesn't change the reality that the Tigers need to win this year, and in order to do that they're going to need their bullpen to be significantly better than it was last year.

Nathan and Soria have plenty of experience. They both make big money, but the Tigers have high expectations and they're playing in a much-improved AL Central division. The pressure is on, and if an inexperienced 24-year-old with a 100 mile-per-hour fastball gives them the best chance to win, don't be shocked if they decide to hand him the closer job.

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http://blog.masslive.com/redsoxmonster/2015/03/detroit_tigers_2015_tigers_bul.html
Ben Shapiro
]]>http://blog.masslive.com/redsoxmonster/2015/03/detroit_tigers_2015_tigers_bul.htmlTop Stories@homepageben-shapirobrad-ausmusbruce-rondondetroit-tigersjoakim-soriajoe-nathanmlb-2015red-sox-monsterspring-training-2015Fri, 13 Mar 2015 20:10:23 UTC2015-03-13T20:11:08ZNO VALUEBen ShapiroFILE - In this Sept. 25, 2014, file photo, Detroit Tigers relief pitcher Joe Nathan throws against the Minnesota Twins in the the ninth inning of a baseball game in Detroit. Nathan is getting ready for another season of big league baseball, with no talk of retirement at age 40. The Detroit Free Press says Nathan has been putting in some of his best conditioning work of recent years as he prepares for the 2015 season, using facilities at the University of Tennessee baseball weight room among others. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya, File)
The Red Sox aren't the only team with veteran major leaguers on their roster who seem likely to be traded.

Spring Training can feel like it is all about emerging young prospects, getting a glimpse of that big-name free agent your favorite team signed last winter, and keeping your fingers crossed that one of your team's indispensable starting pitchers isn't lost for the season to tommy john surgery.

There's also the little matter of trades.

Trades can happen at any time. This spring there are some prominent veterans who seem likely to be dealt sometime between now and the first official pitches of opening day 2015.

Ever since the final outs of the 2014 season were recorded, Boston Red Sox fans have been waiting on the team to deal the likes of Shane Victorino and Allen Craig. When rumors surfaced that the Atlanta Braves had made inquiries about the availability of Jackie Bradley Jr., his name was added to the list of outfielders who Red Sox fans could see being dealt.

The situation in Boston is not unique.

In Los Angeles, the Dodgers new team president Andrew Friedman is still trying to deal with a slew of ill-conceived contracts signed-off on prior to his arrival last fall.

Matt Kemp was shipped off to San Diego last December. Andre Ethier remains.

The Dodgers outfield is likely to be Carl Crawford in left, Yasiel Puig in right, and rookie Joc Pederson in center field. Scott Van Slyke and Chris Heisey serve as able backups.

That leaves Ethier and the remaining three years and $56 million left on his contract as a pricey surplus.

Friedman is prepared to basically pay a rival team to take Ethier off his hands. Last week CBS Sports Jon Heyman reported that the Dodgers would be willing to pay as much as half of the money left on Ethier's contract in an effort to move him.

One week later, Ethier remains on the Dodgers roster.

The Baltimore Orioles lost Nelson Cruz and Nick Markakis last winter. Would they be willing to take on Ethier at a reduced price? The Los Angeles Angels could be without Josh Hamilton for a considerable amount of time following a drug relapse. Would the Angels add Ethier? If Hamilton is suspended, then the Angels would not have to pay Hamilton during his suspension.

The Toronto Blue Jays could be landing spot for Ethier. The team brought on Michael Saunders as their new starting left fielder. Saunders has a history of injuries and already he's incurred a knee injury which required surgery in late February.

Saunders is expected back as early as late April. But the team's overall lack of outfield depth, combined with the Dodgers willingness to pay half of Ethier's salary, could make a trade sensible for both sides.

Toronto also has their own expendable veteran player. Last year, the team got very good everyday production out of catcher Dioner Navarro. That didn't stop them from signing veteran backstop Russell Martin to a five-year, $82 million contract.

Martin's arrival makes Navarro either a very pricey backup catcher, or a tradable asset. Tuesday the Detroit Free Press reported that the Tigers as well as the Arizona Diamondbacks have expressed interest in acquiring Navarro.

Then there are the Philadelphia Phillies. The Phillies roster is a who's who of past-their-prime veterans with overpriced contracts.

Cole Hamels is the name that gets the most attention. That's because it seems so unrealistic for the Phillies to be able to find teams to absorb the contracts of Carlos Ruiz (36 years old, two years, $17 million), Ryan Howard (35 years old, two years, $60 million), Jonathan Papelbon (34 years old, two years, $26 million) and the likely injured Cliff Lee (36 years old, one-year, $37.5 million) in any sort of rational trade.

Philadelphia has an unmatched collection of bad contracts. General manager Ruben Amaro has been unwilling to accept that deals he previously signed off on, are now pushing the 2008 World Series Champs into a prolonged period of sub-.500 finishes.

It is easy to say that the Phillies would be wise to trade away all of these players and get whatever value they can in terms of less expensive major league talent and promising minor league prospects. It is much tougher to actually pull that off. Amaro appears to content to wait for some type of miracle proposal from a desperate major league squad with money to burn.

At some point Amaro may decide that enough is enough. The Phillies can only afford to wait so long on trading most of these players. Everyone is getting older and that means that injuries and a decline in performance, both inevitable effects of aging, will eventually make each player less valuable on the trade market.

Sunday Evening, CBS Sports' Jon Heyman wrote that the Yankees and Phillies had not had any serious talks about Hamels for quite some time, and even when the two sides were engaged, they were never really close to a deal.

Are both men right? Can they be?

Sure, the Yankees have some questions about their starting pitching. The health of both Masahiro Tanaka and Michael Pineda, and thehealth and effectiveness of veteran CC Sabathia.

Yes the Phillies seem eager -- or at least willing -- to trade their best, and most expensive players in exchange for young talent.

Those two circumstances do not guarantee that Hamels will be wearing pinstripes anytime soon.

Then again, if any team in the majors possesses both a willingness to trade their top prospects, along with the ability and desire to add a significant contract such as Hamels' it is the Yankees.

No team in major league baseball hands out contracts in excess of $100 million at the same rate as the Yankees. In spite of their free-spending ways, the Yankees have been willing to let their last two homegrown All-Star major leaguers walk via free agency.

Two winters ago, the Seattle Mariners won a bidding war for free agent second baseman Robinson Cano. Last December, All-Star closer David Robertson walked away from the Yankees to close games for the Chicago White Sox.

It isn't just major leaguers though.

Last June, New York didn't hesitate to trade Peter O'Brien, a catching prospect with significant major league power potential to the Arizona Diamondbacks in exchange for veteran utility man Martin Prado

Simply put, as much as fans love home-grown stars, and as much as the Yankees can claim to value their minor league system, the team's actions speak volumes about their priorities.

The Yankees can speak highly of top prospects such as Luis Severino, Aaron Judge, Gary Sanchez and Rob Redsnyder, but the reality is that the bulk of current Yankees were either brought to the Bronx via free agency or trade.

Combine that trend with an organizational desire to win every year, and add in a two-year postseason drought, and there are no shortage of reasons that the Yankees could end up pulling the trigger on a deal to acquire Hamels.

If the "win now" Yankees decide that this year's starting rotation is inadequate, a scenario in which they ship a trio of their top prospects such as Severino, Judge and Refsnyder to the Phillies in exchange for Hamels and the remaining four year and $94 million left on his contract seems not just plausible, but logical.

New York might love Severino, but he is unlikely to get the 2015 Yankees to the playoffs, or the World Series for that matter.

Judge might be the team's best hope at a 40-home run power hitter in 2017, but the Yankees won't win in 2015 unless the likes of Mark Teixeira, Alex Rodriguez, Carlos Beltran and Brain McCann are swinging for, and clearing the fences.

Does a scenario in which the Yankees desire to win in 2015 trumps the organization's long-term vision for building a successful core sound outlandish to you?

It is beginning to look like Yankees general manager Brian Cashman may end up forcing Yankees fans to ponder this question, even when the subject is beloved and retired shortstop Derek Jeter.

Thursday Cashman was a guest on the Mike Lupica radio show. Bill Price of The New York Daily News reports that, when asked about the now-vacant Captain position, Cashman suggested that not only should Jeter's No. 2 be permanently retried, but the role of Captain should be retired along with it.

Really?

This seems a bit over-the-top doesn't it?

Regardless of whether you love or hate the Yankees, and most major league baseball fans tend to fall into one of those categories, there's no denying the franchise's long, successful and star-studded history.

Was Jeter a great New York Yankee? Absolutely.

Was Jeter a first-ballot Hall of Famer and one of the greatest shortstops ever? Sure, he could easily fit into those categories as well.

By implying that the role of "Team Captain" should be retired along with Jeter, Cashman is basically implying that not only was Jeter the greatest Yankee team captain of all-time but that there's no real chance of the franchise producing any other players of Jeter's caliber in the future.

Yankees fans can now feel free to debate which one of those implications is sillier.

From April 21, 1935 until the day he died, June 2, 1941, Lou Gehrig was the team captain. Gehrig's tenure didn't end when his career was cut-short by ALS, more commonly known as Lou Gehrig's Disease. It continued until the day he died of the fatal ailment at the age of just 37.

From April 17, 1976 to August 2, 1979 the role of captain was occupied by Yankees catcher Thurman Munson. The abrupt end of his captaincy was caused by his tragic death in plane crash.

Is Cashman seriously implying that the role of Captain should end with Jeter's retirement, but it was okay to declare a team captain after Lou Gehrig, baseball's original "iron man" passed away at the age of 37?

It was okay to make Greg Nettles, Willie Randolph, Ron Guidry and Don Mattingly team captains in the years following Monson's tragic death, but Jeter's retirement somehow means that the role can never be aptly filled again?

Monson's career didn't end as Yankees captain. His life did.

None of this is meant to short Jeter on his fantastic career. He's on a very short list of the greatest shortstops to ever play the game, and he's among the greatest Yankees of all-time.

Being among the greatest is not the same as being "the greatest."

To truly appreciate how silly Cashman's proposal is, it is important to list the names of former Yankees who were never named team captains.

Joe DiMaggio, Whitey Ford, Mickey Mantle, and Yogi Berra stand out the most. Berra won three MVP awards and was a key part of ten Yankees World Series titles. DiMaggio had a hit streak you may have heard about. Ford spent 16 seasons pitching for the Yankees. He was a key part of six Yankees World Series Champion teams.

Mantle won three MVP awards and the 1956 Triple Crown.

Had Jeter played for a number of less relevant, less distinguished, and less successful major league franchises, then Cashman's opinion might have a degree of validity.

Not with the Yankees, though.

Plus, is Cashman that sure that the organization won't produce anyone worthy of the "captain" label going forward?

Sure the team's minor league system is in a funk, and Jeter is clearly not an easily replaceable entity, but the Yankees are probably going to end up with another couple of all-time great players over the next few decades.

Cashman might not be around to witness the next Hall of Fame-caliber player the Yankees minor league system produces, but love them or hate them, the franchise's history does not begin and end with Cashman, or Jeter.

Retire his No. 2, have a ceremony, delight in his almost certain induction to Cooperstown, and then move on. Focus on developing and finding the next great Yankee, and when the team does find that player, it might be nice if he could become the team's captain.

Every year, there are rookies who get hype, and every year there are rookies who disappoint.

There are also future rookies, prospects and -- in an era of endless coverage -- prospects have started to fall under the same type of scrutiny that was once reserved for major league players.

The Minnesota Twins might not be that good this year. They haven't made the payoffs since 2009. Since Joe Mauer's production dropped off, the team has lacked a player who could honestly be labeled a "star."

The team might not find a true star this year. But if you're looking for a glimpse of the future, then keep an eye on prospects Byron Buxton and Miguel Sano this spring.

Both top ranked minor leaguers are in Fort Myers at the Twins spring training facility. Both are getting at-bats in exhibition games, and both show signs of becoming the type of star major league players that their hype as prospects has forecasted.

Byron Buxton was the No. 2 overall pick in the 2012 MLB amateur draft. He's one of those five-tool players that just about everyone has slated for superstardom.

Buxton can hit, and hit for power. He's got blazing speed, a rifle arm and an above average glove. He's only 21 years old and, when he's been healthy enough to play in the minors, he's put-up big time numbers.

He's in big-league camp this spring and already he's turned heads. In his first exhibition game Buxton was 2-for-3 with two doubles, an RBI, and one run scored.

Sano isn't quite has highly touted a prospect as Buxton, but he's not that far behind either. Sano has been a top prospect for three years in a row, and he's been on the radar of Baseball America, MLB.com and Baseball Prospectus dating all the way back to 2010.

Sano is not a five-tool player like Buxton. He's more of a two-tool player, but it just so happens that those two tools, hitting and hitting for power, are in high demand, and Sano's power is particularly prolific.

Sano missed all of 2014 while recovering from elbow surgery. Now. he's healthy and producing in Twins camp. Wednesday, Sano had a single, a walk and a stolen base. Those are all encouraging signs, but Twins fans are eagerly awaiting glimpses of the power that produced 35 home runs, 30 doubles and 102 RBI's at two different levels of minor league ball in 2013.

Sano and Buxton are not expected to make the Twins' opening day roster. Even if they both look major league ready this month, the Twins are unlikely to want to rush either of their top prospects into major league action.

That doesn't change the reality that every time they make a play, hit a home run, or steal a base, the grumblings about when these two top prospects will be promoted to the majors will grow louder.

Buxton or Sano making the 2015 opening day roster is highly unlikely. Buxton and Sano both being parts of the opening day 2016 Twins starting lineup? That might not be out of the question.

If Rodriguez doesn't hit this year, the Yankees can still probably compete for a playoff berth. If Tanaka can't stay healthy and effective? If that happens then the Yankees may as well start planning for 2016.

Tanaka is about as important a cog in determining the potential success of this year's Yankees as there is.

It isn't just that when healthy he's a major league ace. It's that the remainder of the Yankees starting rotation is full of question marks. Can Ivan Nova be effective when he returns from Tommy John surgery in late June or July? Can CC Sabathia stay healthy, and if he can will he be any good? Can young hard-throwing Nathan Eovaldi develop into an effective starting pitcher while also changing leagues and pitching in Yankees Stadium?

Will Chris Capuano be good enough to take the mound once every five or six games, and can Adam Warren make some solid starts for at least the first few months of the season?

Michael Pineda looked like a top-of-the-rotation starter in 2014. The only potential red flag with Pineda is that he hasn't made more than 13 starts in a season since 2011.

All of that places a hefty burden on Tanaka.

He's not the only member of the Yankees facing some pressure this spring.

How'd you like to be Didi Gregorius?

For the past two seasons, Gregorius has been trying to settle in and adjust to life as the Arizona Diamondbacks shortstop of the future. The 24-year-old Gregorius probably felt some pressure, but that pales in comparison to what he's going to deal with in 2015.

All of a sudden, he's the guy who's replacing Derek Jeter. The same Jeter who won five rings with the Yankees. The same Jeter who spent 2014 on a non-stop farewell tour around the majors. The same Jeter who has dominated sports headlines on and off the field for the better part of the last 20 years.

There's really no way Gregorius can take Jeter's place. That doesn't change the fact that the Yankees need to get some production out of the shortstop position this year. At one time, Gregorius was a top 100 prospect. He hasn't fulfilled that potential, and now that he's playing shortstop for the Yankees, the pressure to fulfill it will only increase.

Finally, there's the role of closer in the bullpen.

When the 2013 season ended, the Yankees bid farewell to Mariano Rivera. Rivera wasn't just the best closer in Yankees history. He was the best closer in major league history.

The task of filling Rivera's shoes was handed to David Robertson. Last season, he excelled in the role. Robertson was one of the best closers in the AL in 2014. He saved 39 games, and when he filed for free agency the Chicago White Sox offered his a four-year, $46 million contract which he graciously accepted.

The Yankees are breaking in their second new closer in as many seasons. This year, the job will be handed off to Dellin Betances, who is coming off a dominant 2014. The 6-foot-8 flame thrower made the All-Star team as a setup man. He struck out 135 batters in just 90 innings pitched, and in the process made Robertson expendable.

There are a lot of reasons to think that Betances will be a better more dominant closer than Robertson was or ever could be.

There have been times when a dominant setup man has a tough transition to becoming a dominant closer.

The Yankees are banking on Betances not having those types of problems, but the pressure is there, and if he falters then the Yankees will have a problem which no team ever wants to deal with.

Sure, Rodriguez is a big story. He's not the only story, and if the 2015 Yankees are going to compete for the AL East title, he's not even close to being the most important story.

I'm talking about other pertinent questions that will inevitably impact the 2015 season once the games that count start getting played.

For instance: Why did the Texas Rangers just extend one of their oldest active players?

This is a big deal, because if the Rangers are eyeing a rebuild, then they've got some very legitimate assets to dangle in front of would-be contenders. The problem is that if the Rangers don't act fast, they're in danger of becoming the Philadelphia Philles: a team saddled with a collection of almost completely immovable long-term contracts.

Yu Darvish and Adrian Beltre are guys with significant trade value. The same can't be said for the likes of Elvis Andrus, Shin-Soo Choo and Prince Fielder. All three players are talented and have had impressive seasons in the past. But, all three also have large contracts which extend into the next decade. Add in that the three players are coming off injury-plagued 2014 seasons, and the Rangers could be staring at a trio of major problems.

Maybe the Rangers can be healthy and competitive this season. But if they get off to a slow start, general manager Jon Daniels is going to have to make some tough choices.

Monday afternoon, the implication came to fruition. CBS Sports Jon Heyman tweeted news that not only had the Rangers picked-up Beltre's option, but Beltre had agreed to a bit of a salary restructure as well.

If Beltre remains one of the best third baseman in the game, then $34 million for two seasons is a bargain. That's the type of bargain that teams from just about any size market might be willing to take a chance on, if a playoff berth were on the line.

Remember when the Red Sox dealt Jon Lester to the Oakland A's last summer? Lester was a left-handed starter in the midst of a career year. He came with a sub 3.00 ERA and a dazzling post-season resume. In exchange for Lester the Red Sox got Yoenis Cespedes, a good, but not great outfielder, with one year and two months remaining on his existing major league contract. Considering that Lester had only two months remaining on his contract, the Red Sox did OK.

Compare that to the haul that the Chicago Cubs had gotten the A's for Jeff Samardzija a little more than three weeks earlier.

Samardzija is one year younger than Lester. He had pitched one inning in the postseason. He was coming from the National League to the American League, a transition that has caused problems for starting pitcher in the past, and yet the Cubs got a much better haul than the Red Sox got.

Chicago was able to pry Addison Russell, the best prospect in Oakland's minor league system, and one of the very best shortstop prospects in all of the majors away from the A's. That wasn't all. Oakland also parted ways with Billy McKinney, its first round draft pick in 2013. He was not even 20 years old and he's got a lot of major league potential as a center fielder.

A major reason for the difference in talent and long-term potential was that Samardzija would remain under team control through the end of the 2015 season, while Lester was heading towards free agency at the conclusion of the 2014 campaign.

On Dec. 9, he A's took advantage of Samardzija's extra year of affordable service time when they shipped him to the Chicago White Sox in exchange for a package of minor league prospects which included major league ready infielder Marcus Semien and catcher Josh Phegley.

Six days later, Lester agreed to a six-year, $155 million contract with the Cubs. He was gone after just a little more than two months in an A's uniform.

Daniels probably noticed all of this. He knows that this season could be a lot better than the disappointing 2014 one for his Rangers. Then again, if Darvish struggles to stay healthy and Choo, Fielder and Andrus all suffer through injuries or slumps, then the 2015 Rangers could find themselves in last place in the AL West for the second season in a row.

The team's best path out of that type of downward spiral would be dealing whatever valuable veteran assets they've got. Beltre is about as much of a sure thing as the Rangers have. If Fielder, Andrus and Choo all have bounce-back seasons, then the Rangers will probably be competitive. But if they don't, then Beltre, now signed through the end of 2016, could represent the most valuable trade chip on Daniels' major league roster.

Beltre has gone from possibly being the July 2015 equivalent of Lester, to the July 2015 equivalent of Samardzija, and that's got to make Daniels feel like he's got a little more leverage if this season starts out as poorly as last season did in Arlington.

With the East and Central divisions in the rear view mirror, Wednesday's column will look at one prospect to watch on each American League West squad this spring.

Houston Astros: Carlos Correa, 20 years old, RH, SS

Why on earth would you be advised to "keep an eye on," a 20-year-old, non-roster invitee who is coming off a serious knee injury? Why would you invest time in watching a player whose natural position of shortstop is currently occupied by a skilled veteran named Jed Lowrie?

Because he's Carlos Correa, that's why.

There was a time not too long ago that guys named "Mike Trout," and "Bryce Harper," were also deemed not ready or too young for the big leagues.

Ultimately, age is just a number. Talent is tough to quantify, and even tougher to replicate. As good as Lowrie is, and as young and inexperienced as Correa is, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2012 MLB draft is a physically gifted player who happens to play one of baseball's most critical positions.

Correa is a 6-foot-4, right-handed hitting shortstop. He's got lots of speed, and power which should increase as he adds muscle onto his lanky frame. He slashed .325/.416/.520 in High-A ball last year. MLB.com has Correa as the No. 2 prospect in all of the majors. ESPN.com's Keith Law and Baseball Prospectus both have him ranked No. 3.

Would I bet money on Correa making the Astros big-league roster out of spring training in 2015?

Absolutely not.

Would I advise keeping an eye on him because talent such as his is not something you see every day, and sometimes amazing things happen when you least expect it?

Absolutely.

Los Angeles Angels: Cam Bedrosian, 23 years old, RH RP

If you're a slightly older reader, or a bit of a baseball geek, then the name Steve Bedrosian will ring a bell. Steve closed games for the Braves, and Phillies in the 1980's. He was generally overshddowed by the likes of Bruce Sutter and Lee Smith. But in 1987, Bedrosian led the National League in saves and won the NL Cy Young award.

Steve is Cam's father, and apparently the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. Cam is a lot like his father, except Cam has shown an ability to do one particular thing much better than his father ever could.

Miss bats.

Steve averaged 7.0 K's per nine innings pitched over his 14-year major league career. Cam has been in the minors for four seasons. He's averaging 9.8 K's per nine innings pitched. In 2014, pitching at three different minor league levels, Bedrosian averaged an eye-popping 16.4 K's per nine innings, he had 82 strikeouts in only 45 innings pitched.

Bedrosian's impressive K totals earned him a late-season, big-league promotion in 2014. Appearing in 17 late season games, Bedrosian struggled through 19.1 innings of major league work.

There is room in the Angels bullpen for a pitcher who can mow down opposing batters. Bedrosian is unlikely to be a big-league closer this year, but don't be shocked if he earns an opening day roster spot and spends the 2015 season striking out major league hitters in the 7th and 8th innings.

Oakland Athletics: Sean Nolin, 25 years old, LH SP

Oakland A's general manager Billy Beane made so many moves this past season, his projected major league roster and his list of top prospects is almost totally different.

One of the many new additions left-handed starting pitching prospect Sean Nolin.

Nolin was a part of the trade the sent Josh Donaldson to the Toronto Blue Jays. He's not one of those top prospects who garners tons of potentially premature hype. Nolin is already 25 years old, and has had two very brief stints in the majors. But those two stints have totaled just two appearances and 2.1 innings pitched.

If the A's had a totally healthy projected starting rotation, then Nolin wouldn't be a subject of discussion. The A's have two talented young starters, A.J. Griffin and Jarrod Parker, but both men are recovering from Tommy John surgery, and neither is expected to be back on the mound until late June of 2015.

That leaves room in the A's starting rotation for a guy such as Nolin.

The A's always seem to exceed expectations. A big reason for that is the organization's ability to find under-the-radar and inexpensive starting pitchers. Sometimes that's a veteran such as Scott Kazmir or Bartolo Colon, but more often than not it is someone such as Nolin.

Nolin has had a few injuries but he's also been pretty good over the course of four seasons spent in the Blue Jays minor league system.

There are a lot of reasons to think that Nolin could be a classic late-bloomer who just needs some consistent starts in the majors to find his groove.

That's likely to be available for him in Oakland this season. All he needs to do is take advantage of that opportunity this coming spring.

Seattle Mariners: Patrick Kivlehan, 25 years old, RH 3B/1B

Here's a guy who could conceivably sneak onto the Mariners opening day roster.

At first glance, the Mariners appear to be all set at both the third base and first base positions. Then you glance at first base and realize that Logan Morrison, Willie Bloomquist, Ricky Weeks and Jesus Montero do not equate to reliable, consistent production.

Kivlehan is anything but a household name. A former college football player for Rutgers, Kivlehan made enough of an impression on big league scouts to get himself selected in the 4th round of the 2012 MLB draft.

Since then he's made the most of the opportunity to play professional baseball. Last year, Kivlehan impressed at both High-A and Double-A baseball. Then he went to the Arizona Fall League where he put up impressive numbers as well.

In a perfect world, Kivlehan would get some seasoning at the Triple-A level prior to playing in the majors. If he's able to hit for power, something the pitching-strong Mariners desperately need, then there's a chance he could stick around on the major league roster beyond spring training.

Texas Rangers: Delino DeShields, 22 years old, RH OF

DeShields is the son of former Montreal Expos speedster Delino DeShields. He was a fairly high-rated prospect in the Astros organization, but due to a glut of young talent, the Astros left him unprotected in last year's Rule 5 Draft.

The Rangers snatched DeShields up, and now they've basically got to put him on their 25-man opening day roster, or risk losing him on the open market.

On the one hand, he's a fairly safe bet to make the roster, but does that mean he'll make an impression at the big league level?

Of all the skills a player displays while in the minors, speed is the one that most easily translates to the major league level. Power hitters still have to make contact, guys that throw 100 miles per hour have to get their pitches over the plate, and avoid letting guys make solid contact as well.

Guys with elite speed still have elite speed, and it doesn't matter whether they're playing single-A rookie ball, triple-A advanced minor league baseball, or if they're in the majors.

DeShields has that type of speed. He doesn't hit for a great average, but he does draw walks and once he's on base he can utilize his best skill. Last year at double-A Corpus Christi he stole 54 bases in just 114 games. The year before at two different levels of minor league ball DeShields stole 59 bases in 133 games.

The Rangers will probably not have to make much of a decision when it comes to DeShields. Odds are he'll literally run his way onto the opening day roster.

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http://blog.masslive.com/redsoxmonster/2015/02/mlb_spring_training_2015_one_p_2.html
Ben Shapiro
]]>http://blog.masslive.com/redsoxmonster/2015/02/mlb_spring_training_2015_one_p_2.htmlProspect WatchTop Stories@homepageal-westben-shapirobilly-beanecarlos-correahouston-astroslos-angeles-angelsmlbmlb-2015red-sox-monsterspring-training-2015Wed, 18 Feb 2015 22:43:08 UTC2015-02-18T22:44:30ZNO VALUEBen ShapiroShortstop Carlos Correa (Puerto Rico Baseball Academy) the number one overall pick to the Houston Astros during the MLB Draft on Monday June 04,2012 at Studio 42 in Secaucus, NJ. (AP Photo/Tomasso DeRosa)
The Boston Red Sox should take a cue from their hated rivals the New York Yankees and change their team policy on retiring numbers.

The discussion or debate -- or whatever you'd like to call it -- started on Sunday when the new York Yankees announced their intentions to retire the numbers of Andy Pettitte and Bernie Williams. By Monday, Willie Randolph and Jorge Posada had been added to the list of former Yankees would would have their numbers retired.

Former Yankees second baseman Chuck Knoblauch was not impressed. Sunday Knoblaugh took to twitter to express his feelings about the decision.

Knoblauch's absurd tweet stirred others to express their own opinions. Some voiced concerns that the Yankees will run out of double-digit numbers to retire.

Is this a big deal? Would Yankees fans find it challenging to root for a player who wore No. 106? USA Today jumped all over the absurd concern over this non-issue and published a column online trying to determine when the Yankees might run out of numbers to retire.

Monday night on The Average Joe Show, one of the hosts sought to compare the Yankees policy toward retiring numbers to that of the Boston Red Sox.

When it comes to retiring numbers, the Yankees don't have much of an official policy. By contrast, the Red Sox do. On their official website it states that a player must have played for the Red Sox for a minimum of 10 years, and be elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame.

As a diehard Red Sox fan, I'm inclined to favor the less restrictive policy employed by the Yankees. The current Red Sox policy leaves Pedro Martinez technically ineligible to have his number retired.

The policy might have made sense back in the old days, but in the new age of free agency the policy is silly.

Williams, Posada and Pettitte all had key roles in guiding the Yankees to six World Series trips and four rings. All three of them might never be inducted into Cooperstown. But so what?

After all, they might not be the very best of the best when compared to all major league baseball players to have played since late in the 19th century, but as far as the New York Yankees go it is tough to argue with their importance or historical impact.

The exact same thing can be said for former Red Sox players such as Jason Varitek, Tim Wakefield, Curt Schilling and Pedro Martinez. Schilling and Pedro didn't wear the uniform for 10 years, and Wakefield and Varitek are highly unlikely to end up in Cooperstown.

One could go back in Red Sox history and find other players whose numbers have not been retired, but probably should have been. The first name that leaps to mind is that of Dwight Evans. Evans spent 19 seasons with the Red Sox. He was three-time All Star and won eight Gold Gloves. He is not in the Baseball Hall of Fame and thus his No. 24 has not been officially retired.

As it stands, no one on the current 40-man roster wears No. 24, but back in 2009 pitcher Takashi Saito wore No. 24. Prior to that some guy named Manny Ramirez wore No. 24 from 2001 through the summer of 2008.

There are lots of good reasons for Red Sox fans to be critical of the Yankees organization. There's the dated rules regarding facial hair that feel as if they've been lifted from a "Mad Men" script. There's Alex Rodriguez, a depleted minor league system, and of course a lot of history chock full of names like Boone, Steinbrenner, Martin, Dent and Ruth.

When it comes to the organization's policy regarding retiring the numbers of former players, the Yankees get it right, and the Red Sox don't.

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http://blog.masslive.com/redsoxmonster/2015/02/new_york_yankees_2015_why_gett.html
Ben Shapiro
]]>http://blog.masslive.com/redsoxmonster/2015/02/new_york_yankees_2015_why_gett.htmlTop StoriesTop Stories-New Yorkandy-pettitteben-shapirobernie-williamsboston-red-soxdwight-evansmlb-2015new-york-yankeespedro-martinezred-sox-monsterTue, 17 Feb 2015 22:40:30 UTC2015-02-19T17:43:08ZNO VALUEBen ShapiroFILE - This June 23, 2013 file photo shows former New York Yankees outfielder Bernie Williams waving his cap as he is introduced before the Yankees Old Timers Day baseball game at Yankee Stadium in New York. The Yankees are retiring the uniform numbers of Andy Pettitte, Jorge Posada and Bernie Williams and will honor the trio with plaques in Monument Park this season along with Willie Randolph. Williams will be honored before the May 24 game against Texas. (AP Photo/Kathy Willens, file)
Here's one prospect to keep an eye on during spring training 2015 for each team in the American League Central.

In two of the last three season, the AL Central has produced the American League Champion -- the Detroit Tigers in 2012 and Kansas City Royals in 2014.

In 2014, the Royals went to the World Series and rookie starting pitcher Yordano Ventura played a big role in the team's run to within two runs of being crowned World Series Champs.

The 2014, American League rookie of the year was a member of the Chicago White Sox. Jose Abreu blasted 36 home runs and was the first rookie of the year out of the Central since Justin Verlander in 2006.

Expect more prospects to make an impact in the Central this season.

Chicago White Sox: Carlos Rodon, 22 years old, LH P

The White Sox have watched some big-time rookies develop into big-time players over the last few seasons.

Chris Sale and Jose Abreu are the two biggest names. Young Avisail Garcia looks like he's on his way to major league stardom as well.

This spring, the White Sox have a fairly loaded roster. Rather than wait for the minor league system to re-stock their major league roster, White Sox general manager Rick Hahn went out and acquired established veterans via trade or free agency.

Melky Cabrera, David Robertson, Adam LaRoche, and Jeff Samardzjia are all wearing pale hose. Is there room for a talented rookie to grab a roster spot?

If there is room, then keep an eye on the No. 3 overall pick in the 2014 MLB amateur draft. His name is Carlos Rodon. MLB.com calls him the best college lefty since David Price. He's got the stuff to be a future No. 1 starter.

There's not much room in the crowded White Sox rotation. Veteran John Danks has watched his effectiveness drop-off over the past few seasons. Hector Noesi has yet to find consistency at the major league level. It didn't take David Price long to insert himself into the Rays rotation, maybe all Rodon needs is one spectacular spring training?

Ramirez is good, but he's better suited to play second base. Lindor is only 21, but he's already spent 38 games at Triple-A. If he excels this spring, then Indians manager Terry Francona probably won't hesitate to hand the position off to one of the game's best overall shortstop prospects.

Detroit Tigers: Steven Moya, 23 years old, LH OF

No team in all of the majors has been more willing to purge their minor league system in the name of building a World Series caliber squad than the Detroit Tigers.

The system isn't empty, but top rated prospects such as Derek Hill, Kevin Ziomek and Austin Kubitza have only advanced as high as A-ball.

That's not a problem if the Tigers remain healthy at the major league level. In early, February veteran designated hitter Victor Martinez tore his meniscus. He had surgery on Feb. 10, and is expected to be back in time for opening day.

Martinez is 36 years old and, while he rehabs, young Steven Moya could be crushing baseballs in exhibition games. Moya got a taste of the majors last September. He only got eight at-bats in the season's final month.

Moya is not going to be able to replicate Martinez's all-around hitting skills -- very few players can. What Moya may be able to do is replicate or come close to matching the impressive home run hitting skills of teammates Yoenis Cespedes and Miguel Cabrera.

The 6-foot-6 230-pound Moya clobbered 35 home runs at Double-A Erie last season. He's got tremendous power and with Martinez on the sidelines this spring, he's going to get plenty of chances to show-off his power hitting credentials.

If Moya can demonstrate an ability to hit the baseball this spring, then he could easily find his way onto the Tigers opening day roster. If Martinez's recovery is delayed, then there's a chance Moya could be the opening day DH.

Kansas City Royals: Matt Fields, 29 years old, L/R 1B/OF

Yes you read that correctly, Matt Fields is a 29 year old career minor league journeyman who just might be a guy worth watching this spring.

Why?

Well, in spite of being the defending AL Champs, no team in all of the majors hit fewer home runs during the 2014 regular season than the Royals.

There are guys on the roster who can hit for power. Alex Rios, Alex Gordon, Mike Moustakas and Eric Hosmer all have power-hitting ability. Kansas City signed free-agent switch-hitter Kendrys Morales to add another potential base-clearing bat.

Those are nice names, but not one of those players hit more home runs as a professional baseball player in 2014 than Fields did.

Fields cleared the fences 28 times for Triple-A Omaha in 2014. He's a career minor leaguer who has been playing at various levels of the minors for both the Rays and Royals since 2005. In 2013, Fields mashed 31 home runs at Double-A Northwest Arkansas.

What if? What if Fields mashes home runs all through March? What if Kendrys Morales or Eric Hosmer gets hurt? What if Fields literally powers his way onto the Royals opening day roster?

It isn't everyday that a prospect doesn't even make his major league debut until his late 20's. Red Sox outfielder Daniel Nava was 27 when he finally made the big leagues. Chris Colabello of the Minnesota Twins broke into the bigs in 2013, he was 29 years old.

Fields is this season's best bet to be the AL's late-bloomer of note.

Minnesota Twins: Alex Meyer, 25 years old, RH SP/RP

The big names in the Minnesota Twins high-rated minor league system are hitters. Byron Buxton, Miguel Sano and Nick Gordon. However, all three of those talented youngsters are probably not going to see any major league action until late 2015 at the very earliest.

The same can't be said for 25-year-old Alex Meyer.

Meyer was the player the Twins wanted when they dealt established leadoff man Denard Span to the Washington Nationals. A 6-foot-9 righty who throws in the mid 90s, Meyer has plenty of potential. Unfortunately, injuries and control issues have delayed what was once thought to be an inevitable march to the majors.

At 25, Meyer is more than due for a shot at big league success. His durability has always been a question mark, but his high strikeout rate will be enough to force his way onto the big league roster.

He might not end up as a high-strikeout starting pitcher, but he could end up being a right-handed Andrew Miller. A guy who comes out of the bullpen and mows down batters for an inning or two and and as Miller showed this past offseason, that can be a very valuable ability.

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http://blog.masslive.com/redsoxmonster/2015/02/mlb_spring_training_2015_one_p_1.html
Ben Shapiro
]]>http://blog.masslive.com/redsoxmonster/2015/02/mlb_spring_training_2015_one_p_1.htmlProspect WatchTop Stories@homepageal-centralben-shapirodetroit-tigerskansas-city-royalsmlb-2015red-sox-monsterspring-training-2015Tue, 17 Feb 2015 18:02:48 UTC2015-02-17T18:02:54ZNO VALUEBen ShapiroChicago White Sox's Carlos Rodon greets fans during the opening ceremony of the baseball team's SoxFest annual fan convention, Friday, Jan. 23, 2015, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Andrew A. Nelles)
With pitchers and catchers reporting this week, here's a look at some of the American League East prospects who could find their way onto opening day rosters.

I'm not sure about you, but the the combination of a bad 2014 season, and even worse winter weather has me looking forward to spring training a lot more than usual.

Luckily, spring training is not that far off. We're down to less than one week until pitchers and catchers arrive in Florida and Arizona to officially kickoff major league baseball's preseason activities.

Spring training is a time for veteran ball players to get loose, and get into the routines that will help get them through the grind of a 162 game regular season.

It is also an opportunity for young players and prospects to impress major league managers. Sometimes a younger player will unexpectedly end up with a cherished spot on an opening day roster.

Who are the prospects to watch this year?

Here's a list of one player on each American League east squad that could end up as a surprising addition to a major league roster by opening day 2015.

Baltimore Orioles: Dylan Bundy, 22 years old, RH SP

At first glance, it appears that there really isn't much room for a starting pitching prospect to break into the Orioles starting rotation.

There's always a chance an injury opens the door for Bundy. There's also a chance an injury won't be needed.

Bundy was the No. 4 overall pick in the 2011 draft. He was considered a "can't miss" type of prospect. After dominating in the minors, Bundy actually found himself in the majors late in the 2012 season. He was only 19 and his future appeared limitless.

The 2013 season was supposed to be his breakout year, but injuries kept Bundy out of action, and by June he was shutdown to undergo Tommy John surgery.

After rehabbing in 2014, Bundy is finally back at full strength. The Orioles have plenty of veterans but guys like Gonzalez and Jimenez are not exactly pictures of consistency on the mound. Don't let the hefty salary that Jimenez is paid make you think that the Orioles feel obligated to send him out to the mound every five games.

The Orioles are the defending AL East champs. If Bundy looks like the type of ace starting pitcher that made him the first high school player selected in the 2011 draft, then the Orioles will find a way to get him in the starting rotation.

In spite of the system's lofty rankings, there's precious little room on the major league roster. One reason is that a number of the team's recent top prospects appear to have opening day roster spots sewn up.

Christian Vasquez at catcher, Xander Bogaerts at shortstop. Outfielders Rusney Castillo and Mookie Betts look like locks to not just make the opening day roster, but to play on a regular basis as well.

Boston spent a lot of time this past offseason adding experienced pitchers to a depleted starting rotation. Guys such as Wade Miley, Justin Masterson, and Rick Porcello are intended to limit opportunities for a prospect such as 2011 first round draft pick Matt Barnes.

What about injuries though?

Can the Red Sox truly count on Clay Buchholz being healthy? Masterson is coming off an injury-plagued 2014. Barnes is not the highest rated pitching prospect in the Red Sox system. Henry Owens, Eduardo Rodriguez and Brian Johnson are all higher rated. However, none of them are as mature and experienced as Barnes.

The big righty got his first taste of major league action last September. Barnes is 24 so the Red Sox are going to want to figure out where or if he fits into the team's future plans.

That means that even if an opening in the starting rotation is not available, a solid spring could earn Barnes a roster spot as a relief pitcher.

New York Yankees: Rob Refsnyder, 23 years old, RH 2B

When the Yankees lost All-Star second baseman Robinson Cano to the Seattle Mariners in December of 2013 via free ageny, the team had to know that replacing that type of production at that position would not be easy.

Last year, the Yankees saw just how tough it was to find good run production from the second base position. Eight different players were given opportunities to produce at second base. No one was even close to Cano, but both Martin Prado and Yangervis Solarte were able to perform at acceptable levels.

Unfortunately for the Yankees, both players are no longer on the team. Stephen Drew is back, but Drew's slash line of .168/.217/.280 does not give the Yankees high expectations heading into the 2015 season.

For a team that finished near the bottom of the American League in runs scored, getting more production out of the second base position is very important.

That's why 2012 fifth round draft pick Rob Refsnyder could be just one impressive spring training from gaining a key role on the 2015 New York Yankees.

Refsnyder isn't a big name, but after 313 games and three seasons at various levels of the Yankees minor league system he's slashing .297/.389/.444. He's got a bit of power, he can steal an occasional base, and he's adept at finding gaps and getting on base.

Drew's lack of performance at the plate, combined with a habit of getting injured could easily open the door for Refsnyder if he can swing the bat effectively this spring.

Tampa Bay Rays: Alex Colome, 26 years old, RH SP

The Tampa Bay Rays are a team with a well-deserved reputation for developing major league starting pitchers.

After one of the most eventful offseasons in the history of the franchise, the Rays start spring training with a solid and potentially very good starting rotation.

There's talent, but there isn't as much depth as the team is used to having. Matt Moore won't be healthy until the summer. That leaves Drew Smyly, Alex Cobb, Chris Archer and Jake Odorizzi as the team's likely starting pitchers. It also leaves on spot in the starting five open.

Alex Colome has been a prospect for quite sometime. In 2010 Baseball America had him ranked as the 68th best prospects in the majors.

A crowded Rays rotation combined with some struggles in the minors have prevented Colome from fulfilling his once-lofty expectations.

Perhaps he's a late-bloomer? This spring there's ample opportunity for Colome to join the Rays big-league rotation. That opportunity, combined with a new manager and his still promising skill set could set Colome up as a big-league starter by April.

Toronto Blue Jays: Daniel Norris, 21 years old, LH SP

Norris made his big league debut last September. It wasn't anything too impressive, but that doesn't mean that he can't be one of the best rookies to take the mound in 2015.

The Blue Jays may, or may not have space in their starting rotation for Norris.

R.A. Dickey, Mark Buehrle, and Drew Hutchison can count on spots in the starting five. One would think that the Jays would want to give Marco Estrada acquired in the offseason trade that sent Adam Lind to the Brewers a chance to start as well. Former top prospect Marcus Stroman put together an impressive rookie season in 2014.

There are two issues here.

One is that Norris has impressive swing-and-miss stuff. He's has a career strikeout per nine innings pitched ratio of 10.7 and as an added bonus, he doesn't give up a ton of home runs. Considering that the Jays home ballpark, The Rogers Centre is one of baseball's most home run friendly stadiums, keeping the ball from going over the fences is a talent that the Jays would be wise to embrace.

Estrada might have the experience, but his performance has been in a decline. His strikeouts are down and in 2014 he led the National League in home runs allowed.

Estrada is in the final year of his contract. He only costs the Jays $3.9 million. That's more than they'd spend on Norris, but not so much that the Jays couldn't afford to push Estrada to the pen if Norris were able to show that he's the superior starting pitcher.

The fact of the matter is that the Jays are seeking their first playoff appearance since 1993. If a young but very talented starting pitching prospect can help put the team over-the-top, then the franchise will find a way to get him on the mound.

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http://blog.masslive.com/redsoxmonster/2015/02/mlb_spring_training_2015_one_p.html
Ben Shapiro
]]>http://blog.masslive.com/redsoxmonster/2015/02/mlb_spring_training_2015_one_p.htmlTop Stories@homepageamerican-league-eastben-shapiroboston-red-soxmatt-barnesmlb-2015new-york-yankeesred-sox-monsterspring-training-2015Mon, 16 Feb 2015 21:42:15 UTC2015-02-16T21:43:51ZNO VALUEJen McCaffrey | jmccaffr@masslive.com
When it comes to Alex Rodriguez and the New York Yankees, all is forgiven...for now.

Late Tuesday afternoon, Alex Rodriguez and his employers, the New York Yankees had a meeting.

Fox Sports tweeted a statement issued by the Yankees about the meeting. The meeting was initiated by Rodriguez and at it he apologized for "his actions of the last several years."

Those "actions" could be a reference to any number of things: Rodriguez taking performance enhancing drugs, Rodriguez getting busted for using performance enhancing drugs, his declining power, his less frequent hits or his more frequent injuries and strikeouts?

Perhaps Rodriguez was apologizing for being a lightening rod for attention which served to distract fans, his peers and the media from the farewell tours of Mariano Rivera and Derek Jeter.

In the end, it doesn't really matter what it was that Rodriguez was specifically apologizing for. "As far as the Yankees are concerned, the next step is to play baseball in Spring Training."

The Yankees are wise to make this announcement. It basically absolves the Yankees of any blame for the Rodriguez mess. Don't get me wrong, the bulk of blame does reside in Rodriguez's corner.

There's still the little matter of his absurd contract, the one the Yankees proposed back in the fall of 2007 after Rodriguez had opted out of his original absurd 10-year, $252 million deal. Rodriguez was a free agent, and the Yankees weren't just afraid of losing the game's premier offensive weapon, they were also afraid that they'd miss out on being able to capitalize on what appeared to be an inevitable march towards owning all of Major League Baseball's most cherished power-hitting records.

The most critical of those hitting records was the all-time home run crown. It had recently been claimed by Barry Bonds. Bonds finished the 2007 season with an all-time career high of 762 round trippers.

Rodriguez was 31 years old. He hit 54 home runs in 2007 and had hit 518 long balls over the course of his career.

A-Rod was going to break all the records, and unlike Bonds, Rodriguez was in line to be considered a clean-shaven, clean-testing, clean-cut, Yankee when he broke baseball's most celebrated power hitting record.

That was probably why the Yankees outbid no one in particular and signed Rodriguez to a then-record 10-year, $275 million contract extension with a few performance bonuses thrown in for good measure.

Those bonuses totaled $30 million and were for tying and breaking the career home run marks of baseball legends named Willie Mays, Babe Ruth, Hank Aaron and Barry Bonds.

Rodriguez still wants those bonuses. Although, despite Tuesday's warm and fuzzy press release, the Yankees are reportedly not too keen on giving Rodriguez what may total $30 million more on top of the $61 million they already owe him for the next three seasons.

As of now, it behooves both Rodriguez and the Yankees to behave as if everything is friendly and chummy between them.

The Yankees are about to embark of their first Jeter-less season since the mid 1994. They've missed the playoffs in each of the last two seasons, and their highest profile player is also one of the sport's most notorious admitted PED users.

Maybe the A-Rod-Yankees brass truce lasts a month. Maybe it carries through spring training, beyond opening day and into the summer.

The two sides can play nice now, but there's only one way for this truce to last. Alex Rodriguez has to revert back to being somewhat like the exceptional baseball player he was for the first fifteen full seasons of his now notorious career.

The Yankees need to score runs. The Bronx Bombers scored less runs than all but two of their AL counterparts in 2014. Didi Gregorius, and Garrett Jones were acquired this past offseason, and neither one seems like a guy worth counting on to provide headline grabbing run and power production.

Rodriguez would probably love to prove the legions of haters and doubters wrong. He'd love to show everyone that the eye-popping power numbers of his youth, eight seasons with 40 or more home runs and three with over 50, were not just the products of banned substance use.

The 2015 Yankees need Rodriguez to be a big-time power hitter. He can apologize all he wants, and the Yankees can tell the world that all is forgiven and it is time to just play ball,but at the end of the day the one thing that can truly help heal the wounds of the past few years are hits, runs and home runs and a lot of them.

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http://blog.masslive.com/redsoxmonster/2015/02/new_york_yankees_2015_alex_rod.html
Ben Shapiro
]]>http://blog.masslive.com/redsoxmonster/2015/02/new_york_yankees_2015_alex_rod.htmlTop StoriesTop Stories-New York@homepagealex-rodriguezben-shapiromlb-hot-stovenew-york-yankeesperformance-enhancing-drugsred-sox-monsterWed, 11 Feb 2015 21:05:20 UTC2015-02-11T21:06:09ZNO VALUEBen ShapiroFILE - This Oct. 1, 2013 file photo shows New York Yankees' Alex Rodriguez arrivng at the offices of Major League Baseball in New York. Alex Rodriguez plans to meet with New York Yankees' officials before reporting to spring training. Having served a one-season suspension for violations of baseball's drug agreement and labor contract, Rodriguez is due to start workouts at the team's spring training complex on Feb. 26. (AP Photo/David Karp, File)